He saw action as an unutilized substitute five times during the 21/22 season. The following season, he made fifteen loan appearances

for Fortuna Dusseldorf and their B-team. Afterwards, he had a promising loan spell with League Two Burton Albion, scoring two goals

in 21 games, until a hamstring injury ended things in January.

The forward was glad to be sent out on loan by Rob Edwards and Valerien Ismael, and Tom Cleverley could have easily followed suit or

perhaps let Baah go on a permanent basis.

Rather, he allowed him to play during the preseason, first trying him out as a No. 9 and then as one of the two No. 10s.

In order to take advantage of Neil’s turn and attack the right side of the ball, Baah used outstanding touch to get the ball down.

When he got to the box he slowed, sucked Neil in and then was upended as he moved towards the by-line.

Certainly not the best piece of defending the Sunderland skipper will ever display (and when none of your teammates make any

attempt to argue a penalty decision you know you’ve got it badly wrong), but that moment was all about Baah.

From the moment he took the ball down to the moment he was sent sprawling inside the box, he was in charge and knew exactly what

he was doing.

With two more games this week, surely Baah gets a chance to start? Cleverley pointed to him needing to improve his fitness and these

are things not so obvious to us not working at the training ground.

But if Baah can deliver an hour of what we’ve seen in small pockets, then I reckon we’d all like to see it – and if he can do that for the

rest of the season, not deciding to loan or sell him in August may turn out to be as good as any other business.

His contribution helped secure three points that Watford badly needed after a run of league games where they appeared to regress

after such an exciting and promising start.

Against Sunderland they looked more like the team that swatted away Stoke than that which was pecked apart by the Canaries of

Norwich.

Cleverley had his wing-backs sitting a little deeper, a nod towards the need to be more solid, particularly in the opening minutes.

There was almost an audible sigh of relief when 10 minutes passed with a goal being conceded, although the Hornets were far from

passive and they started the game brightly.

Yasser Larouci, Edo Kayembe, Festy Ebosele and Vakoun Bayo all either forced saves from keeper Anthong Patterson or had efforts

blocked as Watford made a strong case for going ahead.

They duly did in the 28th minute, when Larouci swung over a cross from the left and Ebosele swept home the sweetest of volleys that

into the bottom corner. Superb technique from the Irish international.

In the build-up to that opening goal, Bayo played a key part. Even seeing him in the starting XI was enough to register on the social

media Richter Scale, and to be fair it was a surprise to have Daniel Jebbison back on the bench.

So while not wanting to be an apologist for Bayo’s lack of goals, it’s also fair to look at his part in yesterday’s opener.

He chases a ball down the right flank that could have gone out of play, gets to it and then slips a pass to Moussa Sissoko before running inside to receive a return and sends in a shot that is blocked.

The ball then gets worked to Larouci on the left, and the rest we know.

Bayo doesn’t get an assist or even a mention in that goal unless you look a little deeper. He may not be the answer but he is clearly

trying to do what is being asked of him, and some of the vitriol directed towards him from some quarters is disappointing.

Having gone behind, Sunderland rallied towards the end of the half, and Jonathan Boind made a fine flying save to tip over a rising

drive from Luke O’Nien.

Then it was anyone’s game, and Sunderland were probably the better side although they never really opened Watford up.

Their best chances came from distance with Bond doing well to show strong wrists as he not only got to efforts from Jobe Bellingham

and Romaine Mundle, but pushed them some distance away from danger.

Enter Baah, and he took centre stage with the surge that led to the penalty, although credit too for Dele-Bashiru whose penalty was

struck with power and accuracy such that Patterson going the right way made no difference.

There were few scares in the closing minutes, and we even saw the always-entertaining sight of the keeper going up for a set piece:

Patterson’s header was decent but straight at Bond.

Over the 90 minutes it was a game that could have gone either way, and Sunderland will have a case for feeling they were worth a

point.

It was an afternoon to enjoy and a win against a team that is clearly one of the Championship’s stronger sides.

Sometimes the quality of the opposition, and the low but understandable expectations for this season – based upon the two previous

miserable campaigns – are overlooked when judging a performance and result.

Before yesterday, Sunderland had defeated Middlesbrough and Burnley, two clubs that many had picked to win the league this year.

They had also won five of their previous six games.

While it’s not realistic to expect Watford to dominate opponents of that caliber for the entire 90 minutes, it is reasonable to look for

offensive and exciting football, strong defense, and the impression that the players have given as much as the supporters.

Though undoubtedly not flawless and yet facing unanswered questions and problems, this Watford side is likeable and boasts some

exciting talent and experienced players.

However, they and their head coach have already returned smiles to faces and secured points this season—two things we would all

have happily welcomed.

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